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Social Media in Times of Tragedy

How should social media campaigns be managed during times of tragedy? This post is in response to an assignment for one of my classes but I think this is an extremely important lesson for everyone since there seems to be an increase in tragic events and practically everyone has a presence on social media.

I have compiled a list of do’s and don’ts for social media marketing from a couple different websites and listed them below: 

“If you use automated posts scheduled through a site such as Hootsuite, turn them off immediately. If people don’t find them insensitive and uncaring or silly, they’ll likely conclude your messages come from a robot – not a real person – which is just as bad. 

Can you be helpful? Hours after the blasts in Boston, with cell phone service out in the city and family and friends desperately trying to connect with loved ones, Google.org launched “Person Finder: Boston Marathon Explosions.” There, individuals and organizations could share information about the status of marathon participants and spectators for those trying to find them.

If your community has suffered a tragic event, perhaps you have helpful information to share. Here in Florida, which is affected by hurricanes, people use social media to help evacuees and their pets find shelter, and to alert others to danger, such as downed power lines. Depending on your area of expertise, you may be able to provide more general information or commentary. For instance, an educator can share tips for answering children’s questions about the event. Philanthropists might comment on those selflessly step up to help.

Of course, social media marketing is also about reactions and, for many, that’s a sincere expression of sympathy for and unity with those affected.

If you want to post something and you’re unsure about what to say, take a look at what businesses and other brands are sharing, and how online users are reacting. You may decide to just say nothing for a day or two, or whatever time seems reasonable given the nature of the event.

Sometimes, saying nothing at all speaks volumes.” (admin, 2017)

A few additional suggestions are:

“Have a clean slate. Consider taking down recent postings that might be offensive to       current events.      

Don’t avoid the tragedy — Your brand in social media is now part of “the media” and your response (or lack thereof) will be noted by your fans and community.”

Brands are learning to become news content publishers and getting bruised and beat up along the way. The ones who will succeed will follow journalism and communications best practices regardless of the topic by doing routine editorial fact checking and confirming sources. The last thing you want to do is perpetuate misinformation.” (Bowman, 2013)

Examples of an organizations failed attempt to comment, support, or bring closure to a tragic event can be very damaging. A few noteworthy ones follow: 

“This Epicurious Twitter feed used the Boston Marathon bombings as a way to promote recipe content on its popular recipe site. #Fail. 

The tweets ended up being deleted. The brand’s community manager apologized and Epicurious made a statement: “Our tweets this morning were, frankly, insensitive. Our deepest, sincerest apologies.”

This is what can happen on social media. All of a sudden you are now the story.

Don’t let this be you. If you’re going to be in the conversation, keep it on topic.” (Bowman, 2013) 

“American Apparel’s notorious “Hurricane Sandy Sale – in case you’re bored during the storm,” advertised as tens of thousands of people endured freezing temperatures without power. Most of us wouldn’t have even considered such a ploy!” (admin, 2017) 

“Many businesses peg sales to holidays, but the anniversary of the deadliest attack on U.S. soil should never be seen as an opportunity for commercial gain. That didn’t stop San Antonio-based Miracle Mattress for posting a video to Facebook advertising a “Twin Towers” sale. In the video, store manager Cherise Bonanno encourages customers to “remember 9/11” and “get any size mattress for a twin price.” At the end of the clip, store employees scream and fall backward into two stacks of mattresses, meant to symbolize the fallen North and South Towers of the World Trade Center. Bonanno then turns to the camera and says, “We’ll never forget.” (Friedman, 2016)

And though not nearly as documented, there has also been numerous spot on posts to social media by organizations in times of tragedy. A couple of those are mentioned below: 

“Make a tailored statement if your brand has ties to the event: The best example may be this tweet from Nike Running, an account with a very specific connection to the marathon itself. As you can see, the message was very well-received.” (Coffee, 2013)

Nike+ Run Club 

✔@NikeRunning

We run with heavy hearts after the Boston tragedy, but we won’t stop running.

4:47 PM - 17 Apr 2013

         “Here’s a good model tweeted by the Community Foundation of Sarasota

          County.” (Schwartz, 2013)

References  

admin. (2017, March 21). Family Business  Strategies. Retrieved from Wayne Messick Web-Site:  http://www.waynemessick.com/marketing/social-media-marketing-in-times-of-tradgedy

Bowman, C. (2013, April 17). MoJo Creator. Retrieved  from MoJo Creator:  http://www.mojocreator.com/blog/2013/04/17/social-media-strategy-during-tragedy/

Coffee, P. a. (2013, April 23). Adweek.  Retrieved from Adweek:  http://www.adweek.com/digital/how-should-brands-respond-to-tragedy-on-social-media/

Friedman, L. (2016, March 14). Entrepreneur.  Retrieved from Entrepreneur: https://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/272286

Schwartz, N. (2013, April 16). Getting Attention.  Retrieved from Getting Attention:  http://gettingattention.org/2013/04/tragedy-nonprofit-marketing/

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Klout? We All Need It! When I received Klout’s score for my Healthy Living Together social media accounts I was really upset. I mean 10 out of 100! What? Then I reminded myself that these were actually accounts for a fictitious business, right? When I saw the cartoon below I felt even better. Does it illustrate most people’s reaction to Klout’s opinion of their social media campaigns? Well if it does, it shouldn’t! A Klout score is based in part on your interests, the number of networks you are on and how influential you are among your followers. You will notice, it is not based on the number of times you post, it isn’t quantity that drives your score, it is the quality of your posts. You must be dedicated to posting entertaining, informational items that prompt your followers to interact with you. This takes time and effort, you should interact with other people that Klout suggests and learn from them. Repost their posts on topics you share and remember, influence is build over time. Be consistent in posting, review your score often and don’t give up. I definitely learned from this activity and will use it building my real brand in the future.

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Unwired = Unhappy

So for this weeks assignment we were asked to be “unwired” for a day then post our reactions to an entire day without screens. I have to be honest and say not only was I miserable but I made everyone around me miserable as well. I mean seriously, no phone, no television, no computer.....who lives like that? However, I did see that it isn’t exactly a bad idea to shut the phones off during meal times. I found myself making eye contact with my family as I talked to them and I think I heard more of the conversations that I usually do. I also found myself walking my dogs more often, which they loved and I did too. But, I was very happy when the day was over and I could check out all my stuff and watch some netflix and for me, unwired meant unhappy, for the most part anyway.

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GOALS

So this blog is part of an assignment for Social Media Marketing and after just three days and many frustrating hours here it is! I am calling that Goal 1!

Goal 2-During this course we will be discussing Social Media in Times of Tragedy. I think that will be one of the most beneficial parts of this class. Many times I have wondered what people are thinking when they post their thoughts and opinions, is it just to antagonize someone, do they know what they are talking about, is it out of real concern? Our current political environment will most likely require that everyone educate themselves with this topic. Looks like we will be learning that just in time.

My third goal is to absorb as much knowledge as possible about a creating a social media marketing campaign. I plan to work in the health and fitness industry and social media is prevalent in that area, just as it is everywhere else.